Godrej buys 74 per cent in HLL's Gold Mohur
Mumbai: Godrej Agrovet, a subsidiary of Godrej Soaps is acquiring 74 per cent stake in
Hindustan Lever Ltd.'s animal feeds subsidiary, Gold Mohur Foods and Feeds Ltd. (GMFL). GMFL will now be a joint venture between HLL and Godrej Agrovet, with HLL continuing to retain 26 per cent stake in the JV. The Godrej's acquisition of 74% stake is reckoned to be worth in the region of Rs 100 crore.
HLL had recently announced its decision to exit from the animal feeds business to align its businesses with that of its parent company Unilever. It had hived off the animal feeds division as a 100 per cent subsidiary company in April last year. The current turnover of GMFL stands at Rs 300 crore and GAVL at Rs 350 crore. The combined JV will now have a market share of 25 per cent in the animal feeds business.
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Tata group to have centralised HR strategy
Mumbai: As a part of its ongoing restructuring efforts, the Tata group has reportedly formulated a centralised human resource management strategy, expected to be brought into force in the next 18 months. Under the proposed plan, the group executive office will formulate measures to attract good people, retain the better people and advance the best people. The group will have a performance measurement system, potential assessment system, career development system and a remuneration policy, as part of its group HR policy.

The new strategy aims at enabling greater job mobility between companies to keep top performers in the group from leaving. The group has also decided that remuneration policy in group's companies will be driven partly by market trends and partly by the group’s needs.
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Eternit Everest to focus on non-asbestos products
New Delhi: Eternit Everest Ltd., part of the Etex group of Belgium, is planning to phase out from asbestos-based products and re-focus itself on non-asbestos-based products in next few years. All future investments would be made into the development and production of asbestos-free products. Presently, over 90 per cent of the company's production comprise asbestos-based roofing and cement products.

The company had invested Rs 60 crore last year in its Nashik facility for setting up manufacturing capacities of 130 tonnes per annum. The Nashik plant manufactures Eternit Everest's new range of products including the Everest Lifeguard, Eternia, E-Board Classic, E-Board Ply Plus and Promat. These new generation products are expected to contribute significantly to the company's turnover during the next few years.

Eternit Everest had closed the year 1999 with a turnover of Rs 149 crore and the turnover during the calendar year 2000 is estimated to be Rs 156 crore. The company has projected a turnover of about Rs 180 crore during the current year.
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Kvaerner bags GAPL contract
Ahmedabad: Kvaerner Cementation (India) Ltd. has bagged the contract for 600-metre berth, part of the Rs 450-crore container terminal being set up by the Gujarat Adani Port Ltd. (GAPL) at Mundra. The first phase of the container terminal is scheduled to become operational by November 2001. The container terminal at the Mundra Port, with a draft of 18.5 metre, would have the capability of berthing vessels up to 8,000 TEUs.
Kvaerner Cementation obtained the contract against stiff competition from major players such as L&T, Afcons, Gammons India and Hindustan Construction Company. The contract forms part of the 1,100 metres long, 30-metre wide container quay currently under construction at Mundra port on the West Coast.
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GVK Group to foray into mini-hydel power projects
New Delhi: GVK Group, promoted by G V Krishna Reddy has announced Rs 1,000-crore investment plan to diversify into hydel power and non-conventional energy sector. The company proposes to add 200 mw of hydel power capacity at an estimated cost of Rs 1,000 crore over the next two years, by setting up mini hydel power projects across the country. The company has targeted small hydel power projects, as they were easier to build and were less likely to invite attacks from the environmental groups.

The GVK group has already been working on Patikari Hydel Power Project near Palampur in Himachal Pradesh, which will have capacity of 16 mw. The total cost of the project is placed at Rs 82 crore with a debt to equity component of 80:20. The project was awarded to the GVK group in September 2000, by the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board on the basis of a lowest tariff bid of Rs 2.50 per kilowatt-hour. The project is being developed on a 50:50 joint venture basis between the GVK Group and East India Petroleum.
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